


vitae

by Gorman (venetianAnarchist)



Series: Remington and Luca [2]
Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-26
Updated: 2016-11-26
Packaged: 2018-09-02 09:46:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 31
Words: 3,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8662738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/venetianAnarchist/pseuds/Gorman
Summary: snippets from every year of life so-far experienced by a certain blonde basket case.every chapter is 100 words, exactly.





	1. green eyes

**Author's Note:**

> for rammy <3

He was born with his eyes closed. He cried, and he screamed, but at no point did he open his eyes. At no point did he see.

They were green. A bright, striking green. He was at least a week old when Joel and Katherine Gorman got to see this for the first time.

“I think we should call him Forest.”

“God no, we’re not hippies, Kathy. I’m not calling any son of mine after a cluster of trees.” Joel always had his way. “No, he’ll be Luca. Like his grandfather. Luca Gorman.”

Sometimes, Katherine had hers. “Luca Forest Gorman.”


	2. no

“He did it, love. He spoke! I swear he did!” 

“Dammit, what’d he say, Kathy?”

Frustration was a staple for Joel Gorman. His wife was a vague woman, an excitable woman. Sometimes he wished he’d married someone a little bit more on his level. Sometimes Katherine wished the same.  
“He said ‘no’!” A breathless sound of excitement. “Our little boy is growing up.” 

“Sounds like he’ll be a great politician. Look, I’ve gotta go. Work’s busy. See you for dinner.”

Katherine put the phone down. She didn’t have time to feel deflated; Luca made sure of that. He always did.


	3. pink & blue

“I think her room should be green. It would match Luca’s better.” Katherine stood in the centre of the small, windowless bedroom. It had been their son’s nursery until very recently. The news of their daughter’s oncoming arrival had meant that their two year old was moving up in the world. 

“We’ve got pink paint. We’re painting her room pink. Pink for Francesca, blue for Luca.”

Joel leant against the doorframe. His wife knew in her heart of hearts that he wouldn’t budge on this.

“Okay, love. Pink it is. Soft or bright?”

“Soft. Definitely soft.”

And so it was.


	4. frankie

“Why won’t Frankie talk?”

“She’s too little. You’ll be able to play with her soon, Luc. I promise. Why don’t you come and build something with these blocks over here?” Katherine gave her son a tired smile, sitting on the floor with him. Frankie lay on her back nearby. Her little limbs flailed when Luca tickled her belly. 

“Can’t I just stay here with Frankie?” 

“She needs a rest. Come on, Luca.” 

With a sigh of resignation, the boy leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. His blonde curls tickled her face and made her giggle. “Love you, Frank.”


	5. mandatory

“I don’t want to start school. I hate school.” 

“It’s not for another year! And you can’t hate it, darling! You’ve never even been before.” 

His mother ran her hand through his hair, and gave a pinch of his cheek. Luca tried to shake her off, but was unsuccessful. He instead opted for pouting.  
“I hate it. I’m not gonna go.” 

Luca was immediately aware when his father entered. He heard the squeak of his shoes, and the rustle of the newspaper. “Too bad, boy. School’s mandatory.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you’re going. And you need a haircut.”


	6. hannah

School wasn’t as bad as he’d thought it would be. Kindergarten - or, as it was otherwise known by those who attended, Kindergarden - was relatively easy. He’d won a girl’s hand in marriage, and had successfully defended the playground from rivals without losing even once.

“I’m the king, and you’re the knight, and Hannah’s the queen. Okay?”

Simon didn’t seem too happy about being what was effectively the last rung on the hierarchy ladder. “Why are you the king?”

“Because I can run the fastest, and because I’m marrying Hannah. Duh.” 

Absolutely no one could argue with that stellar schoolyard logic.


	7. loony tunes

“You can’t wear that shirt.”

“Why not? I’m gonna be late for school, dad!”

“That show is full of terrible themes. It’s downright ungodly.”

It was Looney Tunes. Luca liked Bugs Bunny, he was smart and he always got the best of the other characters. He wanted to be just like Bugs Bunny.

“It’s only cartoons, dad! It’s not ungodly, it’s just funny.” He folded his arms across his chest, a show of defiance in face of authority. His father scowled. 

“Joel, don’t be silly. He’s got to catch the bus.” 

“Shut up, woman.” 

Katherine winced. Luca changed his shirt.


	8. saint joseph

Luca had never been in a play before. When his teacher had first explained about the Christmas show, he hadn’t thought that they would actually have to perform anything. 

The lights were blinding, but he could make out his mother in the audience. Joel Gorman was standing closer to the stage, camera in hand. 

“It’s not every day that you get to see your boy being Saint Joseph!” He had said. Luca was sure that his dad was proud of him, then.

Right up until he peed himself on stage. He would never perform again, he swore in that moment.


	9. vile

“Dad, what does gay mean?” 

He’d only asked on a whim. He hadn’t really thought about it a whole lot. But the way his father looked at him, all stern disapproval, he knew it must have been bad. 

“Gays are vile, son. They’re men who have relations with men.” He put the newspaper down, lowered his glasses. “Why’d you want to know?”

“Jonny called me gay today.” The frown on Luca’s face was part confusion, and part concern. 

“If anyone ever says that to you again, you hit ‘em as hard as you can, remember that.”

Luca would always remember.


	10. cheerful

He’d never seen his mother cry before. Katherine Gorman was a happy woman. Always smiling, always laughing. Cheerful.

He didn’t like the makeup stains on her face, or the way she bit her lip to keep herself quiet. 

“Are you okay, mom?”

“I’m fine, love. I’m fine.”

Her voice was broken, unfamiliar. It made Luca feel vulnerable.  
“Where’s dad?”

“He’s out, but he’ll be back for dinner, don’t you worry.” She sniffed. Attempted to dry her eyes on her sleeve. Then she hugged her son, like she always did, and she made dinner for her family, like she always did.


	11. treehouse

“Happy Birthday, darling.” 

The candles had been blown out. The flash of a camera momentarily blinded him. Someone blew a party horn. 

“Happy Birthday, Luca!” Cheered the rest of the party guests. He’d never had so many people in their house before. He tried to smile, but it was all a little overwhelming, and he’d eaten too much. 

Later that day, in the treehouse that perched precariously in their backyard, Sandra Keed kissed him on the mouth. It barely lasted a second, and Luca nearly fell over backwards. Her lips tasted like birthday cake and cheap lipgloss. He hated it.


	12. hopscotch

“You can’t do that!”

“I can too! I can do whatever I want, because I’m older and I’m a man.”

Frankie had her hands on her hips, and she was scowling. For a nine year old, she was tall. Taller than Luca, which just so happened to be the bane of his young existence.

“No way, there are rules, and you can’t do that!”

“Since when does Hopscotch have rules? It’s just a dumb girl’s game.” 

He turned just in time to cop a mouthful of mud, and to see his sister’s throwing arm still braced.

“You jerk!” 

“Bum head!”


	13. pathetic

“You’re twelve years old now, you can’t cry like that.”

Luca wished his mom was there. He wished so hard that it made him cry a little more, tears running down his reddened cheeks. She’d only been away for a few days, but he needed her, so desperately that it was painful in and of itself.

“It fucking hurts! I think it’s broken!” He sobbed, cradling his wrist and glaring at his father through haze of tears. 

“Don’t you dare use that language! Pull yourself together, this is pathetic!” 

He never cried in front of anyone else after that day.


	14. popular

“Where’s your homework, Gorman? It’s been days since it was due. I take it you’ve left it at home again?” 

There was something about the tone that Ms Birch spoke with that really made Luca hate her. He felt ashamed, and angry, and that made him spiteful. Spite made him brave.

“No, I just couldn’t be screwed.” 

The class gave a collective intake of breath. No one spoke to Ms Birch like that. 

“That’s the last time you backtalk me, Luca. My office, after class.”

That day, he was invited to sit with the popular kids. He never looked back.


	15. pot

Luca had never been more suspicious of something in his life.

“Try it. I promise, it’s top quality, man.”

Ronan wasn’t necessarily someone that the blonde felt he could trust, considering they’d only known each other a few weeks. And his mom had always told him to be wary of people with inappropriate piercings. He wasn’t sure if an eyebrow piercing was counted. 

Regardless, he took the joint. His hand shook. He coughed on the first draw, and the others giggled like hyenas. Within seconds, he’d joined in. 

“Holy shit.” 

“That’s the spirit! You’re one of us now, pretty boy.”


	16. camping

The stars were incredibly bright, away from the city. New York was his home, and it always had been, but getting away from it all was an eye opening experience.

He lay on his back, turning his head every now and again to look at Frankie. She was beside him, eyes closed, breathing evenly and deliberately as if the air out here was cleansing. 

“I can’t believe I’m thirteen and I’ve never been camping.” She said, a smile gracing her lips. Luca grinned at her.

“When I’m older, I’ll take you out here whenever you want.”

“Really, man?” 

“Yeah. Promise.” 


	17. caught

“Fuck. Fuck, stop, stop stop. I think someone’s coming.” 

“No one’s coming, baby. I promise.” 

Her voice was like honey, all silky and seductive. He looked down at her, his lip between his teeth. “What if we get caught?”

“Oh my god, we won’t. Look, if you don’t wanna do this, it’s cool. We can try like, next weekend or something.”

“I - um. I do. Want to do it, that is. But I mean, there’s stuff I need to do. Today.” 

She said it was fine, zipped up his fly. Stood up. He made sure to avoid her after that.


	18. dropout

“You can’t drop out of school! You’re not some starving black, you should be goddamn studying your ass off, not skating around like a fool! Look at me when I’m talking to you!”

Luca made sure to do exactly the opposite. His jaw was set, narrowed eyes locked firmly on the kitchen table. His father paced and cursed, threw his hands in the air. 

“I can do what I want, dad.” His voice was quiet, menacing. In the next room, he heard his mother let out a wretched sob. 

“Please, Luca. Don't throw your life away.” 

“It’s already fucking done.”


	19. kelly

Luca tilted his head back and blew the perfect smoke ring, eyes closed, lashes fluttering slightly. He passed the joint back to the other boy, the two of them sitting atop the ramp. It was late, and the skatepark was virtually deserted.

“How’s college going?”

“Fuckin’ great. Getting so much pussy, you wouldn’t believe. What are you doing, man? Still skating your life away? Disappointing the ‘rents?”

Luca cracked a grin. “You know it. Mom walked in on me fucking Kelly the other day.”

“Holy shit. Blonde Kelly?”

“Yeah.” 

“You sly dog, you.” 

Luca didn’t feel sly. He felt empty. 


	20. aerosol

The scent of aerosol paint was heavy and thick in the air. Luca could feel it on his tongue. He pulled his collar up to cover his mouth, squinting. 

The image before him was slowly coming together. 

Regret, repress, repeat. That was his system. And when it failed? When it failed, he had his outlets. He had alcohol and pot and graffiti, he had his board and his equally unhappy friends, he had girls and porn for when he didn’t. 

“Almost done, man? We gotta bail.” 

Luca nodded affirmative. Satan stared down from the wall before him, hookah in hand. 


	21. steven

When he was twenty, Luca was arrested. He’d just so happened to be hanging out in a club with some people he called friends, high out of his mind, when someone pissed him off in just the right way. 

He’d retaliated, naturally. Fighting wasn’t really his strongpoint, so in some ways, it was probably better that the cops caught him before a particularly nasty blow to the head did. 

“What’re you doing with your life, kid?”

“You sound like my dad, old man.” 

“I’m sure glad I’m not.” 

Luca smiled ruefully. 

“Name’s Steven Mitchell. Chief of police.” 

“Luca Gorman. Saint.”


	22. skatepark

“Hey fag, what’re you doing with my lady?”

Luca hated this park. All he wanted to do was skate. And yeah, so he’d tried chatting up a girl, because she was hot and she’d been cheering for him while he was skating. It was pretty much an obligatory thing. 

And so was punching this asshole in the head. There was no greater insult than what he’d just so blatantly spurted from his lips. 

His rival had scampered home, a black eye and a split lip later. His girlfriend had been less than impressed. Luca proved himself; he was no fag. 


	23. stubble

“I’m worried about you.” 

Frankie was sitting by her easel, glancing over at her brother while she painted him. Luca was on the leather couch in her apartment, stubble at his jaw and bags beneath his eyes. “What the fuck for? I’m fine.”

“You look like shit and you smell like a walking cigarette tray. Not to mention the fact that you’re fucking jobless and living with a bunch of freaks.”

“I’m fine, Frank. I promise.” His tone was softer now. She knew she was getting through to him. 

“I don’t want to see you killing yourself like this, Luca.” 


	24. manilla folders

“What do you say, kid? Pay’s not all bad, work’s interesting enough. I reckon if you get fit, relatively sober, and motivated enough to get through training, you’d do great.”

The office was cleaner than Luca had expected. A picture of Steven’s wife sat on the desk, and plenty of manilla folders. 

“Let’s get this straight. I don’t need a degree, I just work as a cop after training, and then I can advance to detective work?”

“Yep. Under my guidance, of course.”

Luca bit his lip. “Alright. I’m in.”

“I won’t be easy on you.” 

“I won’t need it.”


	25. christmas

“Looking smart, son.” 

Luca looked his father in the eye for what felt like the first time in years. It probably was, in retrospect. “Thanks.” He wasn’t sure what else to say. 

“We’re so proud of you, Luc. You’ve done so well for yourself.” 

Luca tried his best not to wipe his mother’s rosy lipstick stain from his cheek, and gave his best attempt at a smile. “Thanks, mom.”

“And he’s so fit, isn’t he, Joel? You look like a model!” 

Luca bristled, his father bristled, Frankie bit loudly into an apple. 

A beat. Several more. 

“Merry Christmas.” Murmured Luca.


	26. whiskey

“Maybe you had too much to drink?”

Luca hadn’t. He scowled angrily, gripping his bottle of whiskey and bringing it once more to his lips. 

“Or maybe it’s work? You must see a lot, being a detective…”

More whiskey. The sound of her voice made him grit his teeth.

“Or, baby, have you ever thought that maybe you’re not into women? I mean this does happen a lot-“

She was cut off by the bottle hitting the wall. Shards of it littered the bedroom floor. 

“I’m not gay.” Rage rolled off him in waves. He wasn’t gay. He wasn’t gay.


	27. successful

“To Gorman!” 

Cheers echoed around the bar as his colleagues raised their glasses, all smiles and laughter. Luca couldn’t help but join in. 

He’d been the talk of the force for a good few months now. No one had moved up as quickly as he had; he was only twenty six years old and he was already incredibly successful.

Steven Mitchell beamed with pride. Luca grinned back, a confident, handsome thing. 

“You’ve done well, Luca Gorman. You’ve done real well.”

“I’ve had an excellent teacher, as they say.” And an excellent father figure, for the first time in his life.


	28. modus operandi

“Female, early twenties, caucasian. Been here at least two days.” 

The forensics team were busy. Luca felt like he was going to be sick, but he held himself together. He always held himself together.

“We’re obviously looking for the same killer. MO is identical. Have we got a psych profile yet?” 

“Mitchell says they’re still working on it, boss.”

The blonde sighed, ran a hand through his hair. He’d looked at enough severed body parts in the last few months to last several lifetimes. 

“Just make sure I get the autopsy results. I’m out.” 

This case was hell on earth.


	29. jemcity

His mind was a fog. He felt like he was going to throw up, but he knew nothing would come up. He hadn’t eaten in two days. He was so full of alcohol and pot that he would have killed for a meal, but it was too difficult to make himself eat. 

He’d tried to kill himself twice, but that was also too hard, apparently. He couldn’t do anything right.

It was all that cunt’s fault. It was a wonder Luca still had a job, with his mental state. He wanted Jemcity dead. He wanted so many things for Jemcity.


	30. godlike

“Remi, oh god. So good.”

Luca’s eyes rolled back in his head, bottom lip between his teeth. He straddled Remington’s hips, moving in tandem with his partner, feeling him _so fucking deep_ that it was nearly too much.

“You like that, babe?” 

Remington’s voice sent shivers down his spine, made his breath hitch, his hips buck. Everything about him was intoxicating. 

Luca was breathless, his movements erratic, desperate. “Fucking love you so much.” 

Remi loved hearing those words. Loved seeing them on Luca’s lips. He looked at Luca like he was beautiful. Luca looked at Remi like he was godlike.


	31. feeling's mutual

“Is she asleep?”

Luca leant against the doorframe and gave his husband a tired nod. Remi beckoned him, and Luca grinned and sauntered over to him. The couch was definitely big enough for them both, but Luca sat in Remi’s lap, like he always did. 

They kissed. Not chaste, not sexually-charged, just deep and slow and impossibly breath-taking. Luca pulled away only to attach his mouth to the other man’s jaw, nipping him. “You make me so fucking happy.” He murmured, talking in a way that only Remi ever got to hear. 

“Feeling’s mutual, Luca Forest Gorman-Jemcity.”


End file.
